


Are you insane like me?

by veritasnobislumin



Category: MCU, Marvel, Marvel (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, Explicit Language, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Smut, I'm working on it, Ignoring some of those plot lines, Maybe - Freeform, Mental Instability, Pietro Maximoff Lives, Rough Sex, Sexual Content, Slow Burn, Smut, Sorry Not Sorry, Steve Rogers and the 21st Century, age of ultron aftermath, and laura barton, mainly brucenat, maximoff twins, post AOU, scarletamerica - Freeform, steve and wanda help each other get better, who's ready for some angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-07
Updated: 2016-12-07
Packaged: 2018-04-19 10:03:11
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 6,160
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4742240
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/veritasnobislumin/pseuds/veritasnobislumin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Wanda is still mourning the loss of her brother. Steve is still mourning the loss of the life he could have had way back when. These two broken souls find solace in each other and maybe something more. Can they put back the shattered pieces of their lives or are they too far gone?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

“Couldn’t sleep either?” Steve asked as he walked into the kitchen at the Avengers tower, catching a glimpse of Wanda perched on the island with a thick red blanket wrapped around her shoulders. 

Wanda glanced up at him and shook her head, pulling her attention from the mug she was clutching in her small hands, slightly embarrassed that she’d been caught awake at 3 in the morning. Sleep didn’t exactly come easy to the new Avenger. Tony spared no expense in assuring that his fellow team members were comfortable in the spacious loft that housed most of them but that didn’t make it any easier. It was too big, too quiet, too empty. Despite the fact that she had five other roommates, she had never felt so alone. 

“I’ve found that warm milk helps,” he suggested with a shrug, pouring himself a glass. A soft laugh left his lips when he noticed the scowl on her face. “Not a fan?” he asked with a grin before as he punched a few buttons on the microwave.

“No, not really,” she finally answered; the hoarseness is her voice taking him by surprise. 

Finally getting a good look at her in the dimly lit kitchen, he noticed her red-rimmed eyes and tear-streaked face. It had been less than a month since the events in Sokovia, less than a month since the last time she had seen her brother. The team knew that Wanda was still mourning the loss of Pietro, still grieving her only family, but seeing her like this sent a familiar ache through Steve’s chest. He knew what it was like to be alone, what it was like to lose the last person you had left in the world. 

During the first few days back, they had taken shifts to minimalize the damage caused by her nightmares, learning when one of her hexes blasted straight through three walls after a particularly bad night. If they were lucky, they were able to calm her down in time before something major was broken or destroyed. Steve had been the first one to volunteer and the only one that didn’t complain. It’s not like he slept much anyways. 

With out a word she slipped out of the kitchen, completely unnoticed until Steve turns around to ask if she needed her tea warmed up. 

\--

Not even an hour later her screams echoed through the tower, the heart wrenching sobs sending the rest of the team into panic. It had been almost two weeks without an episode and they were so sure they were over. 

Steve was the first to barrel out of his room, waving off Natasha and Sam back to their rooms as he sprinted down the long hallway. Without a hesitation or a second thought he found himself in her room, arms wrapped around her tiny frame.

“S-steve,” she gasped, her fingers clinging to the fabric of his shirt, wanting to feel anything other than the emptiness her nightmare had left in her chest. 

“It’s okay, you’re okay,” he reassured her, tightening his arms around her, “I’ve got you.” 

Her sobs were quietly muffled against his chest but they might as well have amplified through speakers with the way they were making him feel. He’d do anything to make her feel whole again, to make the pain he knows all too well stop. 

“How do you get over it?” she finally asked, her voice barely above a whisper. It took Steve a moment to remember that Wanda had been in his head before. She knew the aching loss he felt for Peggy, the empty feeling she’d left where his heart should be. 

“I wish I could say you do,” he mumbled, glancing down at her with furrowed brows, “but the truth is it doesn’t go away. It stays there, it starts to pop up anytime you’re starting to feel okay again, but you learn to live with it.”

Wanda nodded meekly and sniffled as she sat up, dabbing at her eyes with the sleeve of her shirt. “That doesn’t really help,” she mumbled softly, keeping her gaze focused on the plush carpet. 

Figuring that she had calmed down enough Steve started to stand so he could give her some privacy, earing a soft whimper from Wanda as she tightened her fingers around his shirt again. “Don’t go yet,” she pleaded, staring up at him with wide eyes, “I don’t want to be alone.”

Not even bothering to give if it a second thought, Steve nodded once and let her curl up into his side. She seemed comically small next to him, especially with the massive red blanket from earlier still draped around her, but it only reminded him just how fragile she really was. Her powers and enhancements aside, Wanda was barely old enough to be considered an actual adult (this he had learned solely from Pietro’s grave), she shouldn’t have been this damaged. But then again, he wasn’t one to talk. The two had a lot more in common than most people thought. 

Her sudden shift against him, no doubt trying to warm her self up, drew Steve’s attention down to her. She looked so peaceful without the permanent frown on her face despite the redness that still lingered from her crying. 

His last thought before slipping into the first dreamless sleep he’d had in months wasn’t about Peggy or Bucky for once, but rather about the tiny Sokovian in his arms and how he wished to see what she looked like when genuinely happy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh man this might not be as slow burn as I thought. I just really want Steve and Wanda together fight me.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not a lot of Steve x Wanda in this. Mainly Wanda dealing with the aftermath of her loss of control. Twice. 
> 
> Okay so some necessary details that pertain to this story.  
> 1\. All events take place after Age of Ultron but before Civil War and Ant-Man  
> 2\. The storyline for this is a combination of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Earth-616  
> 3\. I am clearly changing some of the events from AOU, primarily those involving Bruce, Natasha, Clint, and Laura. So while the farm scene in AOU did take place you can forget the awkward mess of Bruce x Nat that Joss decided was an okay idea and Laura Barton (since she pertains to the Ultimate universe that is Earth-1610.) Instead, the farm is inhabited by Barney Barton and Lucky the dog because I said so.  
> 4\. WANDA IS A MUTANT. I REPEAT. WANDA IS. A. MUTANT. MAGNETO IS HER DAD. Hydra recruited the twins with the sole purpose of understanding the X-gene mutation that leads to the abilities of those we so kindly know as mutants. So while some of Wanda’s powers are thanks to the X-gene (chaos magic, reality warping, telekinesis, hex blasts, etc…), others are due to Hydra’s experimentation (telepathy and mental manipulation). 
> 
> ****All rights to the characters listed in this story belong to Marvel Comics, 20th Century Fox, Universal Pictures, Paramount Pictures, and Disney****

“Are you sure this is a good idea? I don’t want to hurt you,” Wanda sighed, the uncertainty painfully obvious in her voice. Her accent was always noticeable but even more so when she was worried or deep in thought. It was her telltale sign that both Steve and Natasha picked up almost immediately.

“You need to train with someone and out of the rest of the team, I think it’s safe I’m the most resilient one,” Steve shrugged. Of course he wasn’t sure that it was going to end any other way than terribly but it was too late to back out now. Wanda needed to train and it’s not like any other Avengers was going to bounce back from one of her blasts. “Besides, Natasha is right up there just incase things start to go south. It’ll be fine.”

If he was trying to calm her nerves, he was doing a very lousy job.

Up to this point, Wanda had gotten away with refusing to train while the team let her have her space as she acclimated to the new environment. Unfortunately that morning Steve and Natasha had announced that it was time to start learning just how much she could do. Aside from crushing Ultron’s drones (and eventually ripping out Ultron’s core processor), the flying, and turning a few walls into rubble, they weren’t sure what her powers entailed. If she was going to join the team any time soon, it was time to start her training.

“ _I’m going to accidentally murder Captain America,_ ” Wanda murmured in Sokovian, her brows furrowed as she looked up at Steve again, “will you at least use your shield? I don’t know if it will help but it’s something.” 

The vibranium body Ultron had crafted did little to stop her magic, which meant the shield would prove to be just as useless, but he walked across the gym and picked it up anyways. As long as it helped make her less nervous there wasn’t much else Steve could do.

 

\--

                                     

The furniture around her slowly came into view as the haze lifted, the blipping of machines filling in the silence. She knew this place even if she’d only been there once before when they first arrived from Sokovia. Wanda was no fan of doctors or hospitals and even if Dr. Cho had nothing but nice to her, she hated the place.

“How bad?” she murmured, assuming someone was nearby from the emotions that lingered like thick fog in the room.

“He’ll live. I’m sure he’s had worse.”

Wanda drew in a sharp breath at Sam’s response, shutting her eyes tightly as she leaned her head back into the pillows.  He was alive. She hadn’t killed Captain America.

Every inch of her body screamed in protest when she tried to stand up, her legs threatening to give out beneath her before she even touched the cold tile. Leave it to her to completely lose it the first day of training and cause who knows how many millions of dollars in damage to the gym. Wanda Maximoff was the epitome of a walking bad luck magnet. 

“Whoa, easy now,” Sam warned as he stood up from the chair just in time to catch to her from hitting the ground, “you took a pretty nasty hit against the wall. Not to mention that the I.C.E.R. probably hasn’t worn off completely.”

The look on his face was enough to tell her that he’d said too much without even thinking. “The what?” she asked as she settled back into the bed, wincing every time she moved more than inch. Whatever the hell he was talking about, it didn’t sound like something all too pleasant.

“Did you hear that? I think someone’s calling me. Yeah I think that’s Natasha, definitely Natasha,” he nodded, quickly spinning on his heel and heading straight for the door.

He hadn’t even made it three steps before the door slammed shut with a menacing flash of red. “Sam, I’m only going to ask you one more time. What is this I.C.E.R. you mentioned?”

Sam groaned inwardly, mentally kicking himself for even mentioning it. “It’s –uh- well, it stands for Incapacitating Cartridge Em-“

“Incapacitating? _Incapacitating?!_ You drugged me like some kind of animal?! _”_ she shouted, ignoring the stabbing pain in her side as she stood up again, teetering precariously as the room around her began to spin. Well that explained why she felt liked just awoken from a night of heavy drinking. If she hadn’t already thought she was nothing more than an outsider to them, that definitely let her know that she’d never be one of them. They were never going to trust her after they way things had started off.

The black spots in her vision slowly began to disappear only to be replaced by a red tint that left the room looking like it had been filled with a scarlet mist. Wanda couldn’t pinpoint where the sounds or voices were coming from, it was almost as if they’d stuffed cotton in her ears, allowing only muddled words to come through, but she could feel their panic grow with each passing second.

Steve’s voice cut through the rest of the muffled sounds. It wasn’t clear what he was saying but she didn’t need to hear the words to know that he was yelling at someone, clearly unhappy with the way things had gone. “I can’t believe you I.C.E.D. her twice, Natasha,” he hissed, “you were supposed to come find me if she started to lose control again.”

“She could have killed Sam. She could have killed _you,_ ” Natasha quipped back, her voice cold and steady, “we have very different ways of handling things. You weren’t here and I wasn’t going to waste time going to find you so I acted.”

Wanda wanted to protest, to flat out ask Natasha to just get it over with and kill her already, at least that way she’d get to see her parents and Pietro again.  But instead she lay there helplessly as the darkness overtook her vision again, the second dose of dendrotoxin getting to work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay. More notes. 
> 
> 1\. I am creating a timeline of the events that kick started everything, beginning with the death of Django and Marya Maximoff until directly before the story began to help you (and myself) better understand Wanda’s personal issues. 
> 
> 2\. If you have any prompts you want me to weave into the story, please feel free to leave me a comment and I’ll try to work it in somehow.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took so long for me to publish! I have been so busy with school and work that I've had no time to write. Chapter 4 will be much longer.

Wanda sat in one of the dozen chairs around the conference table the Avengers used for their regular meetings, eyes glued to the paper in front of her. It had only been a couple of days since the incident in the infirmary and she was still refusing to speak to Steve, Natasha, and Sam. The rest of the team wasn’t on her good side either but those three were the primary receivers of her icy glare. Whatever topic they were discussing at this point was lost to her, as was the entirety of the meeting. It was still difficult for her to focus with so many people around her, their thoughts proving to be entirely overwhelming. The only way to drown them out was to shut everything else out as well. It wasn't exactly the best method, but it was the only one that worked thus far.  

Steve had barely been able to adjourn the meeting before Wanda pushed herself up and exited the room, the tension everyone had been feeling disappearing with her. She knew she was being childish about the whole situation but at this point it didn’t matter. They had tranquilized her with out her consent. _**Twice**_. Wanda was well aware of how unstable and dangerous her powers were. That was one thing she didn't need to be reminded of. If they had just consulted her about the matter there was a good chance she would have agreed if it meant keeping Steve and the others safe. 

Before she even made it half way down the hall, she heard the faint sound of footsteps behind her. It didn't more than a second for her to realize that Steve had (unfortunately) followed her out of the conference room and based on his hesitance, he was clearly nervous about approaching her. 

 _"Serves him right,"_ Wanda mused to herself, " _he's the one that let Nat shoot me."_

 _"_ Your quarters are the other way, Captain Rogers," she finally said aloud, taking Steve by surprise. He hadn't thought she noticed him leave the conference room behind her.  

"How did y-the telepathy, right," he mumbled, outwardly cringing when he spotted the annoyed glare aimed at him, "can we talk for a minute? It's important."

"I think this is considered talking, isn't it?" she shrugged and continued down the hall, not even sure where she was going any more. Having no choice but to turn left or right, she quickly head towards the left and ended up in the living room of the tower. At least she hadn’t ended up in the gym that was still being repaired. It was painfully obvious that she was still pissed at him about what happened. They hadn’t exactly spoken since the training, not that he was even slightly surprised. He hadn’t been on board with the I.C.E.R. being used with out her consent but if they weren’t speaking, he couldn’t really explain that.

Steve watched her curiously from the doorway, unsure if he should just turn around and head back to the rest of the team or try and get what he had to say off of his chest.

“It’s not really talking if only one of us is doing it,” Wanda sighed; now watching him from the couch she had flopped down on, “you did say you wanted to talk, didn’t you?”

Whether he meant to or not, his entire demeanor had changed in those short moments. His guard was up, his brows furrowed in what she could only imagine was concentration. He was deep in thought about something but she knew it wasn’t her place to pry. Wanda had quickly noted that there really were two sides to Steve Rogers. On one hand, there was Captain America. He was authoritative, assertive, self-assured, and even slightly abrasive. Cap was the clear leader of the team. But on occasion, Steve Rogers showed himself. He was slightly more easy-going and approachable, still a natural born leader, but less intimidating. Steve Rogers was the person who convinced Wanda to join the new Avengers, not Captain America.

Nodding once, Steve shuffled into the living room and sat in the armchair that was across from the couch. He would have rather sat next to her but gauging by the look on her face, he decided it would be best not to risk it.

“How’ve yo-,” he started, only to be stopped by a loud scoff coming from Wanda.

“Captain Rogers, you and I both know you aren’t hear to ask me how I’ve been. I’m sure you know how I’ve been. Or you can at least guess how one would be feeling after being shot with a tranquilizer twice buy someone you consider a teammate,” she answered coldly, cutting any chance of formalities.

Steve winced momentarily at the sharpness in her words, his face losing any emotion from it within seconds. If she was going to act that way towards him then he saw no reason to act any differently towards her.

“I get it, you’re still mad at Natasha and I for what happened, but you saw what happened in the gym. There’s an entire wall missing. I may not agree with what Nat did but if she hadn’t acted, who knows what could have happened. The same goes for the infirmary. You didn’t see the look on your face. Sam could have been seriously hurt,” Steve finally managed to get out, trying to keep his voice level. That’s not what he had wanted to say but Wanda had given him no choice. She was being irrational.

A laugh escaped Wanda’s lips, an actual honest to god laugh, as she slowly stood up from the couch. “I don’t need to be reminded about how dangerous I am to have around others. I understand that I’m a liability to this team but if I recall what happened correctly, it was you and Natasha that pressed me to try and train. Did the two of you even stop to think about why I _refused_ to for so long? Hydra made me a weapon. They poked and prodded and tore me apart just to put me back together the way they wanted to. I thought the two of you would know that better than anyone but I guess I was mistaken. It just goes to show that you can't always assume anything about a person."

Before Steve could even try to get another word out, Wanda stormed out of the living room, a slew of angry Sokovian phrases echoing down the hall behind her. 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise you'll get Steve x Wanda soon. I just needed a little tension before things got too fluffy.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> i'm trying to get back in the swing of things so this is short   
> next chapter will probably tomorrow tbh

Rubble and debris littered the street for blocks in either direction and the smoke made it hard to make out anything further than five or six feet away but Wanda could make out the distinct blue flashes that accompanied a strike from Mjolnir. Tony Stark had elicited yet another copycat who managed to create their own small army of sentinels and it was now up to the Avengers to take matters into their own hands and stop them from wreaking havoc on the city.

“A little back up would nice!” Wanda shouted into her headset, pausing only to send another energy blast towards a hoard of sentinels coming directly towards her before ducking behind one of the abandoned cars left out in the middle of the street. “They’re coming from every direction!”

She had had enough of robot armies to last her a lifetime but it seemed like Sokovia would not be her last encounter with them. Especially not when her teammate seemed to encourage tech wiz’s from every corner of the earth to come up with their own creations. 

After what felt like forever with no response, Wanda gritted her teeth and pushed herself up again despite the blood streaming from the gash in her forehead and the stabbing pain in her side, she was by no means as invincible as some of those on the team. From what she could tell, there were more than they had originally thought and the others must have had their hands full. Taking a deep breath, which only caused the pain to grow by a tenfold, she took a shaky step forward and continued to send energy blasts left and right, lighting up the area around her with flashes of red. 

“How you holding up? We’ve got our hands full on our end, this little shit must have had a lot of time on his hands to build so many,” Sam finally spoke up, his voice coming in loud and clear through the earpiece along with what sounded like Steve shouting and metal hitting on metal. 

“Fine, I’m fine. I count at least three dozen more just on this block and Barton had to go help Romanoff,” she responded, grunting softly as another explosion sent cement and metal flying in every direction. Never in her life had she been so thankful for her force fields. If only she’d been near her brother when he was hit. Shaking the thought from her head, she pushed forward and managed to take down another five or six before having to duck behind another car. She knew that if she wore out too soon, her magic would be useless and she’d be left vulnerable smack dab in the middle of the warzone. 

The next hour seemed to tick by agonizingly slow as the sentinels kept coming at the team in swarms. Just when things began to slow down, another mass would come out of nowhere, each batch stronger than the last. Wanda was nearing the end of her fight, each blast she sent at the robots leaving her feeling weak. She had a long way to go before she was fully prepared for a lengthy battle and was now regretting not taking her training more seriously.  
“Thor! Romanoff! Someone!” Sam shouted, the panic evident in his voice, “We need to evac! Steve’s been hit! It’s bad you guys, it’s really bad.”

Suddenly, the world went silent, or at least it felt like it did. There was no more smashing, no more explosions, no more metallic screeches, or sirens. There was just the sound of her heartbeat echoing through her head. A familiar heaviness resonated in her chest, a feeling that had only happened once before. Wanda dropped to her knees, the last bits of her energy flowing out of her as a red mist encompassed the surrounding neighborhood as if it were trapped under a bubble and every sentinel in the area began dropping one by one. As quickly as the sound had left, it returned, the metallic cling against the sidewalks and cars echoing loudly in her ears.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This has been a long time in the making since I basically went MIA  
> I work one job full time and a second part time ontop of going to school so my freetime is limited and is usually taken up by sleeping/keeping up with my own mental health  
> Not to mention that my mom has been in and out of the hospital  
> But anyways, I hope someone still reads this
> 
> xo


	5. Chapter 5

“You can’t stay here forever, you know that right?” Pietro sighed as he looked down at his sister, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. 

“Who’s going to make me go back? You?” Wanda muttered in their native Sokovian, keeping her eyes focused on the crack in the wall in front of her. 

The last thing she remembered from New York was Sam’s voice coming in over her earpiece. Steve had been injured and from the sound of the panic in his best friend’s voice, it was bad. Suddenly she was back home in Sokovia, well the place that was once considered home, she hadn’t seen the old apartment since the Stark Industries missile destroyed it. And if that wasn’t enough to let her know that something was seriously wrong, the familiar silver haired speedster sitting on the couch sure did. 

“I’m serious Wanda. You’re going to have to go back eventually,” he sighed, his arm still draped around her shoulders. He would have added that this was obviously not real but figured it was best to just leave that detail be. 

“I don’t want to go back. I hate it there. I miss home, I miss you,” she mumbled quietly, her voice cracking before she could finish speaking. 

Real or not real, Wanda finally felt whole again. She hadn’t realized what a big part of her had been missing until suddenly it wasn’t anymore. She had spent her twenty-three years on earth a twin. Pietro had his12 minutes of being on his own but she hadn’t. From the moment that Wanda Maximoff was born, she never spent more than 12 minutes without her brother. The death of her parents was made bearable solely because he was by her side. Even when they were in Hydra’s laboratories their cells were side-by-side. She was sure that their closeness was what made them the only two successful enhancements. 

“I miss you too but you belong there. Like it or not, you’re an Avenger now,” he shrugged, a soft chuckle leaving his lips. “I never thought I’d say that but you can finally do something good for this world. That’s what we signed up for in the first place, isn’t it?” 

“It’s a nightmare, Pietro, a real life nightmare. I don’t belong on the team, I almost killed Captain America two weeks ago and then I almost vaporized Falcon. HYDRA was right, we weren’t ready to go out,” she whispered, the memory of the incident in the gym still fresh in her mind. 

After her silent treatment of everyone involved in the I.C.E.R. situation was over, Steve and Sam had reassured her over and over again that it wasn’t her fault, she was still getting a handle on her powers, but Wanda refused to believe them. She was dangerous and deep down; she knew that everyone on the team knew it as well. Sooner or later, they would all come to accept it and she would be out on the street again. Only this time, she’d be on her own for good. 

Pietro scoffed loudly, rolling his eyes at his sister, “You’ve seen the footage from the first battle in New York. Hawkeye was brainwashed and helped Thor’s brother nearly destroy the city but he’s still on the team. If anyone understands, it’s those guys. Come on sis, it’s time for you to go back.” 

Wanda shook her head, clutching to him tightly. “I won’t go, you can’t make me,” she whimpered, burying his face against his chest. 

\--

“I think she’s awake,” Sam called out to Steve who was out in the hallway with Clint and Natasha. 

Both Steve and Wanda had ended up in the infirmary after their fight with the sentinels. The rest of the team was pretty banged up but Steve had taken a particularly nasty hit from a collapsed building that left him out cold. Just when things were starting to look hopeless, a familiar flash of red sent every robot in sight crashing down. When everyone on the team but one made it back to the Quinjet, Clint went back out to locate Wanda and found her unresponsive in a pile of rubble. 

All of that had been four days ago. Steve had recovered quickly, as he was expected to, but Wanda was still unconscious and things were not looking good for the newest Avenger. 

“It’s kind of weird that you’re just sitting there watching me. Do I need to get a restraining order?” Wanda mumbled hoarsely, earning a snort from both Sam and Steve. 

“You wish I was stalking you,” Sam teased, sitting back down in one of the chairs that were next to the bed. “I’m a real catch but sadly, I’m off the market already. My buddy Steve here is a free agent though.”

Wanda didn’t need to have her eyes open to know that Steve was probably as red as the pattern on his shield. 

“Real funny,” Steve mumbled, inconspicuously elbowing Sam in the side once after he’d taken the seat next to him before turning his attention back to Wanda. “How are you feeling?” he asked, trying and failing to sound less concerned than he actually was. 

“Oh I’m feeling fantastic. I could definitely go out on the field right now if I had to,” Wanda mumbled, finally opening her eyes. It took a second for her vision to adjust but when it did, she almost wished she’d kept them closed. 

Sam looked much worse than Steve did with bruises covering a good portion of his face and right arm. It looked like his eyebrow had been split open and judging by the way he was sitting, the bruising probably went beyond his arm and down his side and leg. Steve looked better but not by much. His bruises were further along in the healing process but judging by what they looked like now, she could tell they were bad. His face and neck seemed to just be one giant bruise and his knuckles were still pretty scraped up. 

“Well don’t get too ahead of yourself, the doctor said you have three cracked ribs and that cast on your arm isn’t exactly for show. We made sure they bandaged it with red though,” Sam grinned, earning another elbow to the side from Steve. 

Wanda raised a brow, glancing down at her arm as she pulled it from underneath the blanket. “Huh, well that explains why it hurt so much I guess,” she mumbled, shaking her head as she looked back up at the pair. “Everyone else is okay though, right? And none of the civilians were hurt?” 

“Everyone’s a little beat up, with the exception of Bruce of course, and all of the civilians were evacuated on time. The clean up crew has a lot on their hands of course considering that over 80 robots just dropped out of midair at once. You wouldn’t happen to know anything about that would you?” Steve asked, unable to stop the smile that was tugging at the corners of his lips. 

“Nope. Not a clue,” Wanda shrugged, grinning sheepishly up at him. 

Clearing his throat, Sam stood up and nodded once, backing up towards the door. “I think Nat and Clint are calling me for something. Yeah, pretty sure they just called my named,” he stated before quickly exiting the room and closing the door behind him. 

Steve stared after him, rolling his eyes as the door slammed shut. “You have to excuse him. He’s…well he’s kind of an idiot,” he shrugged and shook his head. He was sure that Sam was up to something but he wasn’t sure he wanted to know what it was. 

Wanda beamed up at him and shrugged, wincing as she leaned back into the pillows again. “Birds of a feather,” she teased, laughing quietly at the expression she’d earned from Steve. 

“Rudeness aside,” Steve joked, shaking his head, “I’m glad you’re okay, Wanda. I…we...were all worried,” he added, taking her un-casted hand in his. 

Silently thanking whatever doctor decided she didn’t need to be hooked up to a heart monitor, Wanda looked up at him with a smile. “You don’t need to worry about me, Cap, I’m always okay.”

Steve chuckled, rolling his eyes playfully. “I don’t doubt that but I don’t think I can help it.” 

Maybe Pietro hadn’t been wrong; maybe she did belong here. Maybe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I may have teared up a lil while writing this.   
> The Maximoff twins break my heart.   
> Still taking prompts you'd like me to weave into the story if you have any.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> update: after a much needed hiatus due to health issues, this story will be resuming soon. like within the next week.

In her time with the Avengers, Wanda had gotten very good at quite a few things. 

Her English had significantly improved as had her hand to hand combat. 

Her magic was much better now thanks to Tony bringing in his good friend, Doctor Stephen Vincent Strange. 

She could now successfully maneuver her way around New York without having to call Pepper or Sam for directions. 

And most importantly, she had learned how to muffle the screams resulting from her nightmares before anyone could hear. 

That one had definitely been the hardest. 

The images her sleep brought her changed from night to night. Sometimes she stood by as her brother was shot down before her and no amount of warnings or pleading could make him move. Other times she was back in Sokovia watching helplessly as her home crumbled around her, pinning her parents beneath the rubble and trapping her and Pietro underneath the kitchen table where their dinner sat. A few times she was back in the HYDRA labs with the scientists poking, prodding, and cutting away as they pleased. Here again, no amount of begging and pleading would make them stop. The first few times each dream had taken her by surprise, causing her to wake with a fit of scream and sobs. But soon she was able to pinpoint the exact moment when she would awaken and reach for the pillow just in time. 

But this night it was different. 

It was not her brother, or her parents, or even herself. 

It was Steve. 

Steve being completely overtaken by the sentinels from the last mission, unable to fight them off on his own any longer. The rest of the team was no where to be found and no matter how loud Wanda yelled, they just kept coming in swarms. Soon she couldn’t make out where Steve ended and where the robots began. After what felt like an eternity, the metal creatures finally began to march off one by one, leaving her Steven a crumpled lifeless figure on the ground. 

A sudden flash of red filled her vision and left her throat feeling like it was on fire. 

She had been unaware that she’d awoken, as had the rest of the tower probably, until she finally felt a pair of familiar arms around her. He seemed to be saying something but she couldn’t quite make the words out over the heart wrenching sobs that wouldn’t seem to end. 

“Wanda. Wanda, you’re okay. Can you hear me? Wanda, it’s okay, you’re okay,” Steve murmured, his arms still wrapped protectively around her small frame as he pulled her into his lap so his body wasn’t craned awkwardly.

Ignoring the stabbing pain in her side from her healing ribs, Wanda buried her face against his chest, inhaling the familiar scent as her hands gripped the front of his shirt. “You’re okay, oh god, you’re okay,” she gasped through her sobs, fighting against the burning feeling in her chest for air.

“Of course I’m okay, why wouldn’t I be?” he asked, slightly puzzled by her statement, “I was in my room right down the hall.” 

“Oh Steve, It was awful. There were so many of them and they just kept coming and I couldn’t do anything about it,” she whimpered, looking up at him with tears brimming in her eyes. 

“It was just a nightmare, Wanda. It wasn’t real,” he reassured her, stroking her hair out of her face, “Everything is okay, you can go back to bed.” 

Wanda shook her head and just clung to him tighter, refusing to believe that her nightmare had been anything but real. She had only ever dreamt people who were already gone, what if her dream of Steve was more than just that. 

“Would you like me to stay for a while?” he finally asked, knowing that if he left at that moment there was no telling how she would wake up next. 

Wanda nodded meekly, wiping her eyes with the sleeves of her sweater. “Please,” she mumbled, barely above a whisper as she stared up at him.

Unable to say no to her, Steve simply nodded once and slowly let go of her so she could lie back down. He sat frozen for a moment, unaware of what he was supposed to do. Wanting nothing more than to lie beside her and have her in his arms once again, he finally gave in and did just that. 

“Try to get some sleep, please,” he sighed as he pulled the blanket over their bodies before wrapping his arm around her. 

“Goodnight, Steven,” Wanda murmured tiredly as she drifted off into a dreamless sleep. 

\--

The bright sun coming in through the massive windows caused Steve to stir in his sleep, his eyes opening once he realized that he was not alone. Memories of the previous night came back and he remembered that he was in Wanda’s room. Not wanting to wake her, he shifted slightly as he tried to pull his arm from underneath her.

“You could just ask me to move,” the small brunette mumbled sleepily as she lifted her body from the bed just enough to allow him to remove his arm. 

“I didn’t want to wake you,” he admitted sheepishly with a soft chuckle, “I guess that didn’t work.”

Wanda laughed quietly and shook her head, still half asleep and nuzzled against her pillows, “Mm no, I guess not.” 

The sound of her laughter, even as quiet as it was, was a much-welcomed sound after what he’d witnessed less than eight hours ago. She was his teammate and he’d hate to see any of his friends in that situation, but there was something about Wanda that made him want to do whatever he could to make things okay. Out of nowhere, he’d become incredibly protective of her as had been noted numerous times by Sam and even Thor, something that Steve refused to acknowledge.

But as he lay there with his other arm still wrapped around her, perfectly content in listening to the steady sound of her breathing, he couldn’t help but think that maybe there was something more.


End file.
